It seems like a disservice to Deafheaven to simply describe the band (George Clarke, Kerry McCoy Daniel Tracy, Stephen Clark & Shiv Mehra) as a Black Metal outfit.

Sure, the music carries all the hallmarks of the extreme metal genre viz. fast tempos, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking but Deafheaven is much more. Halfway through the opening track (“Brought to the Water”) of their new album, New Bermuda, the song takes on an incongruous atmospheric dream pop tone that changes the emotional tone significantly before it ends with a solo piano playing the chord progression! Unexpected.

After the critical acclaim showered on sophomore effort, Sunbather, it’s comforting to note that Deafheaven have not compromised their high standards on New Bermuda. It would not be out of place to suggest that this is what progressive rock sounds like in 2015 – the exploration of new frontiers and exciting cross-pollinating hybrids indicate that talented and courageous music creators are out there on the fringes of modern rock making fresh & wildly innovative popular music.

This creativity continues for the rest of New Bermuda in songs that never go under eight minutes (the epic “Luna” and the invigorating “Baby Blue” cross the 10 minute mark!) but never overstay their welcome in any way. Not falling into the inherent obsolescence of staying within genre boundaries, Deafheaven fly free of all constraints and totally against type have created transcendent rock music that even the most optimistic of us believers thought was now impossible!

PERFECT LOVE DRIVES OUT FEAR

Back in the 70s, the Government conducted a smear campaign against rock n roll and labeled it as ‘yellow culture’ meaning it was decadent and unsuitable for nation building blah blah fucking blah. But to be fair, many countries worldwide were unable to accept the hippie generation (including its originator, the USA) – it’s just that it was possible in Singapore to utterly destroy the thriving local music scene in order to stamp out this undesirable phenomenon. Which they duly did.

Breaking news: Grunge rockers Alice in Chains will headline and close Singapore Rock Festival on 6th March 2014! The band completes the Thursday night lineup with Alter Bridge and Jason Newsted. Rob Zombie, Korn, Five Finger Death Punch and Black Veil Brides provide the metal entertainment on Wednesday 5th March.

Tickets for the first night on March 5 is on sale now while tickets for the second night on March 6 goes on sale 9:00 AM on January 10 at www.sistic.com.sg

Early Bird Doubleshot Package: $198 (both nights)
Early Bird Single Shot: $118
Standard Single Shot: $128
At the door: $148

Sistic booking fee not included.

To Book tickets in Singapore:
Online: www.sistic.com.sg
By Phone: +65 6348-5555
Agents: At all authorized Sistic outlets in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Tickets can also be purchased through the SISTIC Mobile and iNETS mobile apps.

SISTIC Mobile is available at the Apple App Store, Google Play store or Samsung Apps. Download iNETS mobile through the Apple App store or Google Play store or SMS to 76387.

Skullmania: New Wave Of Singaporean Heavy Metal EP Launch

Hood Bar & Café played host to Skullmania’s New Wave of Singaporean Heavy Metal EP launch last Saturday. The band shared the stage with Various X-capes, Zaganoth, Suicide Solution and Thy Fallen Kingdom.

BRUTAL HONESTY

Known for its visceral forays into math rock and experimental jazz territory, Koloss – Swedish headbangers Meshuggah‘s follow-up to the sonic onslaught that was 2008’s obZen, is a retreat of sorts into organic, riff-driven songwriting. Not that any of Meshuggah‘s trademark heaviness or power is lost in the process by any means, but Koloss comes across like an album that has nothing to prove.

THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS

I sometimes wonder what famed writers Robert Bloch and HP Lovecraft would have thought of metal bands like High on Fire appropriating their imagery for songs about fear, horror and death? For the uninitiated, De Vermis Mysteriis or Mysteries of the Worm, is a fictional grimoire created by Bloch and incorporated by Lovecraft into the lore of the Cthulhu Mythos. I imagine after getting over the sheer visceral shock of the music itself, they would have probably been quite honoured. Who knows, they might have hated it?!?

The Chosen Few (Legacy)

Here’s a ‘best of’ compilation with a twist – every one of the tracks on Judas Priest’s The Chosen Few having been selected by other heavy metal/hard rock musicians. Notable amongst them – Ozzy Osbourne opts for Ripper (a live version is featured), Joe Satriani votes for Painkiller, James Hetfield chooses Victim of Changes (another live rendition) whilst Slash includes Screaming for Vengeance.

Nothing particularly shocking, as most of the tracks come from Priest’s heyday (1977 to 1985) and include some of my personal favourites e.g. the visceral Dissident Aggressor, the speed metallic Exciter, the glam-rock-infused Living After Midnight and the power balladic Beyond the Realms of Death.

The perfect introduction to Priest before you zero in on their glorious discography (Stained Class, British Steel, Screaming for Vengeance et al). The diehards would probably have these classic tracks already in their possession. Highly recommended.

Mention the name “Ozzy Osbourne” and chances are the notorious legend of the rock star biting off the head of a bat thrown on stage in 1982 will rear its ugly head (sorry). Pretty much the reputation of Osbourne is built on being the original singer of Black Sabbath and being the ultimate rock madman (primarily in the 80s, after being sacked by Sabbath).

This documentary attempts to present Osbourne in all his contradictory glory. The satanic figure who kneels in silent prayer before a gig, the drug-addled alcoholic who has been clean and sober for the last five years, the heavy metal pioneer who’s favourite band is The Beatles and so on.

Opening in the present, the documentary follows Osbourne on tour at various locations around the world – his rituals, his preparations and his process. Then, we are presented with a history lesson as Osbourne and various relevant interviewees – Black Sabbath members, his wife Sharon, his five children and even Paul McCartney (!) – share insights into the life and times of Osbourne.

Of course, much screen time is given over to accounts of Osbourne’s crazed antics that even outgross Motley Crue’s Tommy Lee, no slouch in the rabble rousing stakes himself! Osbourne’s self destructive habits continue even as he is reinvented as reality star in the Osbournes, which unfortunately only cements his reputation as the aging rock star drunk.

However, there is a happy ending to the narrative as Osbourne reveals that he managed to pull his life from the abyss of alcoholism and drug addiction due to the example of his youngest son, Jack. A touching resolution to this cautionary tale of rock n roll excess. Ozzy and metal fans in general will no doubt enjoy the intriguing insights into Osbourne’s life.

OPETH Heritage (Roadrunner)

Swedish heavy metal band Opeth’s tenth studio album is a departure from its death metal roots (see album cover above) and is a serious venture into progressive rock territory. A successful one it must be said. Opening with the neo-classical piano piece, Heritage, the rest of this album contains a potent hybrid of hard rock, symphonic metal, folk and jazz fusion elements with ‘proper singing’ (no growls) making it closer to a neo-prog masterpiece one might get from Dream Theater or Spock’s Beard.

Whilst death metal purists might find this direction compromising, the addition of nylon guitars, mellotron and flutes will recall classic Jethro Tull and please old-school progressive rock enthusiasts (yours truly included) no end. Clocking in at almost an hour, Heritage is a treasure trove of virtuosity and high concept that has to consumed whole. Heavy and epic when it needs to be, and sensitive and soulful at the appropriate moments, Heritage is a worthy addition to 2011’s list of best albums.

When singer David Coverdale left Deep Purple in the late 70s to start up Whitesnake, I wonder if he could have ever imagined that his new band would be one of the biggest rock groups in the mid-80s and a staple of the ‘hair metal’ generation. Whitesnake fans in Singapore can finally rock out to classic songs like Here I Go Again, Fool For Your Loving and Give Me All Your Love when Coverdale and co play Fort Canning Park on 1st November from 8pm.

Concert promoters LAMC Productions has kindly offered a pair of tickets for Power of Pop to give away. All you need to do is to follow us at Twitter @powerofpop and RT the entire tweet concerning this giveaway offer. Deadline – 11.59pm Wednesday 7th September. NB. You must follow @powerofpop to be eligible.

So look out for that tweet and in the meantime, here’s Whitesnake live in London in 2006 with Here I Go Again.

Once upon a time, no band would be caught dead playing only ‘old’ songs at a concert without performing any new material whatsoever. If any band did so, it would lose all credibility and be dismissed as an “oldies” band. The Beach Boys, since the 80s, is a good example of this.

This American hair metal band combined the shock rock of Alice Cooper, the influence of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (Motorhead, Judas Priest) and the glam image of the New York Dolls to produce an idiosyncratic but highly popular brand of metal. After huge commercial success and criticism from parental/religious groups in the early 80s, the band split up in 1987.

Why is it that Canadian power trio Rush is able to attract such a massive loyal fan base (which include several rock luminaries) whilst critics continue to ignore its obvious contributions to rock music. How is it that a lightweight like Bon Jovi can be nominated for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame whilst Rush is snubbed? Well, this new documentary from the makers of Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey seems to lay bare the reasons why.

Metal is probably one of the most misunderstood rock genres. Associated with dark themes, metal often gets religious groups all riled up but really, a metal performance is no more “satanic” than a rendition of the Faust opera! Ultimately a metal concert is a show, with dark theatrics thrown in for good measure, with the contributors no more “satanic” than the Faust opera performers.

It’s a damn long history to this la…but here’s the super summarized version.

In 1999, Zach, Adrian and an ex meltgsnow bassman jammed together. One day, the bassman asked me along to one of their jam sessions and from there, meltgsnow began their “insane destruction” or shall I say Greed For Insanity.

Singapore’s metal scene has been thriving for awhile now with bands like Rudra and Impiety making their mark outside our shores. Likewise, Meltgsnow, whose debut album was released in the USA back in 2003. After seven long years, the band has finished its sophomore effort – Black Penance – and it’s certainly worth the wait!